Deadly Notions - By Elizabeth Lynn Casey Page 0,61
went with the mousy little girl, yes.”
She considered Rose’s words, their missing component a needed piece in the puzzle. “I wish I knew what she said.”
“If you really want to know, why don’t you just ask?” Leona tossed the magazine onto the coffee table and looked around the room, her gaze narrowing on the various pieces of food taking shape around the room. “I have to say this food project is one of the cuter ones we’ve ever done.”
“We’ve?” Georgina challenged.
Leona rolled her eyes and grabbed another magazine from the pile. “I am part of this group, aren’t I?”
“How, we’re not quite sure.” Rose set her completed piece of ham to the side and reached down to the floor, pulling a piece of dark brown felt from Tori’s pile. “The crust on the bread needs to be darker then the actual top and bottom, don’t you think?”
“I don’t know why I keep coming to these meetings each week only to be insulted for my intelligence.”
Rose looked up. “Your intelligence?”
“Ladies.” Tori quickly teed her hands together. “What do you say we head into the kitchen and sample everyone’s treats before we really get down to business? Abby’s and Sophie’s birthdays are right around the corner and we’ve got a lot of food to make between now and then.”
One by one each circle member rose from their chair and headed toward the kitchen, the conversation of choice switching from murder theories to pies and cakes. Tori trailed behind the group only to be stopped in her tracks by a waiting Margaret Louise. “Melissa told me about your investigation.”
“Margaret Louise, I can’t help it. Chief Dallas isn’t looking in the right place.”
“We’re both sittin’ in amen corner, Victoria. I just want to help is all.”
Help.
“Can you encourage Melissa to invite Zoe Rowen over for a playdate? Perhaps with the right questions, one of you can get a handle on where her mother stood in terms of Ashley Lawson?”
“Okay. And how about Kayla? Do you think we should invite her, too?”
She considered the possibility. “Why don’t you wait on that. For just a little while, anyway. Just in case Caroline might be more willing to talk without Samantha being there. And besides, I think your sister is right.”
Margaret Louise turned toward the kitchen only to stop mid-step. “Now, Victoria, I realize even a blind squirrel finds an acorn every once in a while, but don’t you think you’re goin’ a bit far?”
Tori laughed. “Be nice.”
“Why? Leona was positively awful to you about Milo, tonight.”
The smile slipped from her face. “She’s just looking out for me in her own way. You know that.”
“Maybe. But she still has a stingin’ way of doin’ it.”
She couldn’t argue.
“Victoria?”
“Hmm?”
“You mind tellin’ me what, exactly, my twin was right about?”
“The stuff about Regina and Samantha.”
Margaret Louise scrunched up her brows. “What stuff?”
“That I need to ask in order to know.”
Chapter 22
“So how was your circle meeting last night?”
Tori leaned to the left and peered around the computer. “I hear you, but I don’t see you.”
Two large encyclopedias parted in the middle atop a backless shelf to reveal a pair of large, brown eyes. “I’m right here. Someone put M in front of D, and S in front of R.”
“You’ll have that,” she said. “As to your question, it was fine. Operation Play Food is coming along nicely.”
“Miss Sinclair, I have to admit, I’m having a hard time imagining play food made from fabric.”
Pushing her shoulders back, she took the opportunity to stretch her neck and shoulders, her time spent researching titles for the teen club leaving her more than a little stiff. “I would have said the same thing if I hadn’t seen the things Debbie has made for Suzanna and Jackson over the years. She’s got bread, ham, peanut butter, lettuce, chips, brownies, pancakes with pats of butter, and that’s only the tip of the iceberg.”
“Is it hard to make?”
Tori shook her head. “Not really. It’s a bit time-consuming since much of it is done by hand, but to be honest, I like that more than the machine most times. It makes me feel like it’s really me making it.”
A large green volume passed in front of Nina’s face, blocking her from view momentarily. “Do you think you could teach me how to make things like that?”
“Sure. I don’t see why not.” She looked back over the list of teen titles one last time before sending it to the printer. As the telltale whir of the machine signaled its